Colleagues,

At the January 10th board meeting, the board voted to adopt sustainability as a college core value. It is the first core value to be added since our values were adopted in December 2003.

As you may recall, during Fall Inservice 2005, it was proposed that Lane include sustainability as one of the college’s core values; a “straw” poll was conducted, and 96 percent of faculty and staff supported the proposal. Since then, the Sustainability and Learning Group drafted the core value language which has been approved by the Learning, Facilities, and Diversity Councils. College Council approved the core value on November 29, 2006.

The sustainability core value statement is:

• Integrate practices that support and improve the health of systems that sustain life.

• Provide an interdisciplinary learning environment that builds understanding of sustainable ecological, social, and economic systems, concern for environmental justice, and the competence to act on such knowledge.

• Equip and encourage all students and staff to participate actively in building a socially diverse, just, and sustainable society, while cultivating connections to local, regional, and global communities.

I’m very proud of our sustainability initiatives which have reduced expenses and won recognition for Lane. Last year, the college saved about $300,000 due to conservation and practices such as recycling. Lane has won five sustainability-related awards since July 2005, including national awards from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education and the National Recycling Coalition. We are a charter member and I will be serving on the Leadership Circle of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment.

The new sustainability core value will be added to the existing Lane Core Values (Learning, Diversity, Innovation, Collaboration & Partnership, Integrity, and Accessibility). Thanks to everyone who worked to develop the statement and to all staff members who support sustainability and take personal responsibility for creating and using sustainable practices and principles in our daily work.

Mary